Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity agreed at its 12th Conference of the Parties in South Korea on an action oriented decision linking biodiversity and poverty

During 2013-2014 SwedBio Director Maria Schultz was together with Mr Hem Pande from Ministry of Environment and Forests, India, co-chairing the process under the CBD on Biodiversity for Poverty Eradication and Development A final decision was taken at CBD-COP12 in October 2014, including the Chennai Guidance for the Integration of Biodiversity and Poverty Eradication, which includes sections on Integration of biodiversity and poverty eradication for sustainable development; Minimizing adverse impacts, and facilitating participation; and Capacity‑building, enabling environment and funding support. The result was well received by parties and other actors.

“It should be said that the positive outcome can be partly attributed to the large network and partners in the SwedBio Collaborative Programme, such as CBD Alliance, Forest Peoples Programme (FPP), Indigenous Information Network (IIN), Indigenous Peoples and Community Conserved Areas (ICCA) consortium, Poverty and Environment Initiative (UNEP/UNDP) and United Nations University – Institute of Advanced Studies, who all contributed to the process”, says Maria Schultz.

SwedBio's mission

SwedBio is a knowledge interface on resilience & development at Stockholm Resilience Centre.

Our mission is to enable knowledge generation, dialogue and exchange between practitioners, policymakers and scientists for development and implementation of policies and methods – which contribute to poverty alleviation, equity, sustainable livelihoods and social-ecological systems rich in biodiversity that persist, adapt and transform under global change.